Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Republic, February 23. Laura Spector (Lenox, MA) finished 6h in the Junior 10K Pursuit today, at the European Biathlon Championships.
Spector, in her final major competition as a junior competitor, moved from 12th position at the start to finish sixth, with five penalties, 3:16.4 behind Marine Bolliet of France. Bolliet, winning in 37:34.5, had three penalties, but was unchallenged throughout the competition. Veronika Vitkova of the Czech Republic finished second, with five penalties, 45.5 seconds back, while Mariya Sadilova of Russia, with four penalties, won the Bronze medal, 1:57.5 back. The five penalties forced Spector to ski her way to the top six finish, and the ensuing flower ceremony. From the outset today, she skied aggressively and it paid off handsomely.
She came to the first stage in 10th position. Although the wind never stopped today, it had died considerably from the time she zeroed until her first stage. Spector missed two shots in the first stage. She said, “I did not realize how much the wind had died from zero, but I got a correction that helped in the second stage.†Leaving in 13th position, she battled the soft, wet, mushy snow to move back into the top 10, by the second prone stage, where she had a single penalty.
Once again, she lost a position, only to regain it by the time she was back in the stadium for the first standing stage. As those around her missed two or three shots, she had a single miscue. This time, she left the loop in eighth position, within striking distance of the next two competitors. Again, she passed another competitor on the tracks to come to the final stage on point seven. With another single penalty, she flew around the sloppy loop, leaving in sixth position, which she maintained to the finish.
Spector had the third fastest ski time among the Junior Women, just 40.6 seconds slower than that of the third place finisher, Mariya Sadilova of Russia, who moved from 15th position at the start.
Spector was smiling as she came out of the finish area and commented, “I worked hard on the tracks to make up for those penalty loops today. These conditions (soft and wet) are actually good for me because I am small. I do not sink down, as some of the other girls. This is such a great way to end my junior career. I will really appreciate this flower ceremony.â€
Asked if a result like this justifies the time she has spent away from her education at Dartmouth, she added, “I do not regret any of the school time missed for biathlon. Every race is a learning experience.â€
